Lessons Learned

by Cosmic Sky

It's said that you never stop learning. Usually, such a phrase was directed at people like Tsukune, who'd agree with it. With people like Ririko, well, she was a teacher, helping students learn was her passion. The thing is, you're never too young or old to learn a few lessons; Lessons in life, and lessons in love and relationships. Some could hurt, and others could heal.

13. 13) Lessons in the Takeoff

Hey, everyone. As of this chapter, "Lessons Learned" is officially one year old. I'd like to thank everyone who's favorited, followed, and reviewed this story. Each one has helped spurn my writing on. All of it has brought me here, to Chapter Thirteen, which I'll also say is something of a season finale. It'll mark the end of the "Summer School Arc", and readers, we're going to be ending with a bang of multiple sorts. I hope you all enjoy the chapter!

I do not own anything.

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Lesson 13-Lessons in the Take Off

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"So, how's it look?"

Tsukune looked to Gin, then to Audrey as he felt her highly concentrated eyes on him. Try as he might to downplay it Daiki was incredibly tuned in as well. Like the other three, he also had retesting which he sorely wanted to pass. Actually, Tsukune was just like them, and yet here he was looking over their work for mistakes, again. For a second, he looked to his right where Nikhil was standing, silently observing as he mostly had since their study session began. He very easily could have filled in for Tsukune, but the serpentine boy had decided this would be Tsukune's moment.

At first, he'd been so nervous he was amazed he was able to focus on his own studying, let alone oversee everyone else's. Everyone had put their faith in him, something that again terrified him, yet Tsukune felt resolved to do right by them. That's why he spent what felt like ten minutes looking over their work before handing it back to them.

"You've all made improvements. I think you're ready." He said after he did so. Tsukune was quietly taken aback by how confident he sounded. He wasn't faking a single word; he honestly believed his friends were ready for their retakes. They're ready, but what about me? The pondering didn't last long as he refocused on his friends. "If you guys think you're ready, then go for it."

There was a heavy silence over the rest of the teenagers as the human's words sunk into them. Hearing that he through they were ready filled them with confidence, but like Tsukune they had their self-doubts to overcome. Personally, he'd been there, and Tsukune would argue he was still there. The reactions his friends gave would likely play a part in his own decision making.

"What about you, Tsukune, do you think you're ready for your retakes?" Daiki asked, unknowingly confirming his prediction.

The ball was undeniably in his court. Nikhil told him it was his move when he looked at him for a split second. Gazing back at his three friends, he inhaled in preparation for his answer. "I…think so. I think I'm ready. Guys, I…don't think you should use me as some kind of measuring stick."

"Eh, considering you're helping us out, I disagree. Besides, if you're going to go for it then I might as well. Remember, we've got people waiting for us, along with a nice sunny beach." Gin remarked.

Those words gave Tsukune pause and a reason to think. The thought of the girls always filled him with resolve to make it through his retakes. Especially when he imaged them in rather skippy swimsuits. While the drive was still there, the erotic excitement such imaginary once invoked had slackened a little. Just a little. He didn't dwell on what that meant for too long as he had the present to think about. And the immediate future, as in the next three days or so. Those things brought everything in his mind into razor focus. While he thought over those things the human was keenly watched his serpentine ally.

He's becoming a whole lot more focused and competent. Pushing him so deep into the fire without a shield seems to have indeed worked wonders on him. Nikhil internally mused. It wasn't something he thought would ever happen, at least not this early, but it was the path that life had taken Tsukune Aono down.

The two boys ended up locking eyes with each other. A silent understanding passed between them. While their academics were important, so too was their physical training, especially in Tsukune's case. In the back of the human's mind, he knew that his actions today had opened a door that wasn't going to be easily closed. Before it would quite a few monsters were going to come rushing through it to get at him.

More, I still need more training. Tsukune noted. His hands subconsciously tightened as if he were already in training. After a minute he relaxed his grip. Looking back at his friends he saw all of them had an idea knew something else was running through his mind. "Sorry, guys."

"Don't be. You're one of those people who thinks a lot. It's one of your good points." Daiki casually comforted. "Just don't forget to take some time off and relax a little, otherwise you'll end up too high-strung for your own good."

"And if you do, odds are I'll get some of the blame for me." Gin half-jokingly added.

"After this, we relax. Just like we…planned." Audrey affirmed. She patted her chest in a display of confidence that brought a smile to the boys' faces. "Learned enough, thanks to you."

"Well, Tsukune, what say you? Do you agree?" Nikhil questioned. Tsukune shot him a dry stare that actually got a humorous chuckle out of the Indian teen. "While yes, I am the strongest of this odd little group, you've been taking charge with that charisma of yours. You're actually a tad more charismatic than I first thought, Tsukune."

That response threw him off somewhat, and it showed. The rest of his friends laughed at his naked embarrassment. "G-G-Guys, I'm not sure is charismatic is the word I'd use to describe myself."

"Charming is usually the word people would use for you, Tsukune. Pretty sure you know why." Gin laughed. "I really can't help but wonder what the girls are going to think of you when we meet them again. I'm guessing they'll be impressed." As Tsukune's expression gave him ample ammo to go for more. "Hell, they may even fall for you more so than they already had."

"Gin," Tsukune groaned. "Can we get back to studying?"

"Hey, we've studied enough, man! We're ready for our retakes!" Audrey and Gin raised their hands in approval. "Tsukune, you've given us all the help you can. If we still fail…well, hope you won't mind giving us a little more."

"Not at all, you guys." He was amazed at just how…warm the feeling swirling inside of his chest was. Seeing his friends putting their confidence in him and affirming that they'll still believe in him even if he fails. Something about it just…made him incredibly happy. It also made Tsukune hope beyond measure that they'd pass their retakes. Maybe he was hoping for their success more so than his own. "Alright, I guess that settles it. We're finished studying for the night."

"Yes! Game time!" Audrey shouted jumping up to her feet. Daiki was a little less enthusiastic, but it was clear he was just as excited as her. Gin seemed to be eager too, even if he wasn't a gamer himself.

Nikhil wasn't one either, not to the extent of his best friend, but he wasn't opposed to spending time with his friends. That went for Tsukune too.

"Alright, Audrey, what sort of games do you have picked out for us? Hopefully nothing too…provocative." His brown eyes flickered in Gin's direction. The werewolf bit back a chuckle at his accusation. Having roomed with him, and known him for a few months, Tsukune had a pretty good idea what sort of games the werewolf would be wanting to play. And what sort he might rope Tsukune into as well.

The banshee's grin stretched from ear-to-ear. "Come and see." She simply said with a heartfelt glow in her eyes.

Several minutes later and the group of four friends had gathered their schoolwork. It went without saying they left the empty classroom more confident than they had been going in. The smiles on their faces were undeniable proof that they all were sure their futures were bright.

And maybe that they'd have the most wins when their first game night ended.

---

Tsukune was seconds away from hanging up the phone when a voice finally came through on the other end of the line. "Hello?"

For a minute he was utterly amazed, shocked to hear the voice on the other end. His shock almost cost him the opportunity he'd been hoping for. "M-M-Mizore! Mizore, it's me!"

He could practically picture her shocked face on the other end of the line. Then the smile that she no doubt wore as she recognized his voice. "Tsukune! Tsukune! Finally, I've been trying to call you for the last couple of days, but I've been so busy."

"Really?" He questioned with genuine surprise.

"My family runs a ski resort and it's the heart of summer, vacation season's been booming." That answered his question and gave him a little more insight into what sort of family life his icy friend had. Mizore had sparingly mentioned a couple of times that her family ran a business. A ski resort? That was actually nice to know and got him thinking of what could happen if she used some influence to get them a free trip there. "We've…had a lot of business this time of the year, including some…special costumers let's say. I've been working my butt off."

"They've been that demanding?" Tsukune questioned feeling a twinge of sympathy for his friend.

"You have no idea." Mizore groaned. He could hear the raw loathing in her voice. Usually only someone like Kotsubo could invoke that sort of reaction in her.

That connection made Tsukune's stomach rumble in unease. "Mizore," he began. "These guests, have any of them tried to…have any of them tried to…make a-"

"No, Tsukune. It's been nothing I couldn't handle." The gentleness in her voice quelled the unease in him. He wished that he could see her face though. While her voice put his mind to ease Tsukune had a feeling he'd really feel comforted if he could see the truth on her face. Perhaps she'd feel happier if she could see his face as well. "Just a couple of…well, rowdy guests. Plus some creepy ones."

"Creepy?" The human jokingly repeated.

"Hey, coming from me that should mean something important." Mizore playfully fired back. "Still, it's nothing that I can't handle…or my other yuki-onna."

"What are they like, Mizore?" Sitting up against the wall and getting comfortable. "You never talked all that much about the other yuki-onna that you grew up around, or really what your childhood was like altogether?"

"It was…well, I haven't had it as bad as I could have. I had two parents who loved me growing up and supported me as much as they could. Not to mention the other yuki-onna and snowmen looked after me. That's a thing in our village, we're a very close-knit community." A short pause came, seemingly so Tsukune could let the information sink in. While it did, he was sure that Mizore needed it as well. He knew she knew that she was telling him that she had a seemingly cozy home life. "We're a very insular village, even with our…public business. Even amongst all those people, it can still be hard to find someone to talk to. Especially from the…outside world."

Tsukune got the drift. "Were you scared leaving the village?"

"Of course I was, but…I had you." He could again hear the smile in her voice.

He was perhaps becoming a little more analytical than he was willing to admit. Mizore hadn't used "thought" in her statement, indicating she'd been wrong. In a sense, she had gotten her wish to meet and befriend him. It's just the "falling in love" part that she'd failed at, and that had turned into an adventure unto itself. Thankfully though, they were past that. "Are there any other yuki-onna who got to Yōkai, or planning on starting their first term here in the fall?" He asked trying to lighten the mood.

"There's a handful. Them asking me what Yōkai Academy is like is the first time that I've actually talked to some of them." It was minor but he could detect the upbeat tone of her voice. That brought a greater smile to his face. "Six yuki-onna and three yuki-okoto will be coming to Yōkai Academy next year as freshmen students."

"So you're going to have nine little snow bunnies calling your senpai." Tsukune remarked with a giddy smile.

"Hmmm, maybe. But I'm still going to be your snow bunny, Tsukune, your one and only." She downright purred leading him to let out an amused chuckle. Yep, this was definitely the same Mizore that he knew, the one he'd gotten used to. Suddenly, he was glad that they were just on the phone instead of face to face. Not to mention that they were alone. Kurumu, Moka, and Yukari would have been chopping at the bit to ruin this potential moment between them. "You haven't met any other girls at summer school, have you?" She suddenly asked, her voice having changed from feathery snow to cold, hard ice.

The transformation didn't surprise Tsukune in the slightest. Was that cause for concern? "No, no, none." While Audrey's face appeared in his mind, he knew his feels for her weren't romantic. She was just a friend, one that he sorely needed in these last couple of days. Would Mizore accept that? Geez, this is what I was afraid of.

Yeah, but hey, if you can make it past Mizore, you'll be fine. She is the most unhinged one of the group, isn't she? Seriously, this is the girl who-

Yeah, yeah, I know! We don't need to revisit that!

Actually, we are revisiting it because this is your first time talking to her in days. Squinting, Tsukune could have sworn he now had a roommate, one who was listening in on his call. Either directly in front of him or right beside him. Even worse, he couldn't do anything to make him stop...short of maybe ramming his head against the wall. You've made a platonic female friend and you're getting awfully friendly with a busty math teacher. Come on, you've gotten better at math. You know how this all adds up once a person like Mizore is thrown into the mix.

Tsukune did in fact know, in the back of his mind. He'd pushed the equation back there, but hearing Mizore's voice had brought it all back. It was practically carried in by the mysterious voice that had taken up in his head. Heaving out a sigh, he lightly hit his head against the wall.

"If you want me to come down to the school, I will." Came the yuki-onna's suggestive voice.

He was three seconds from shouting no. Common sense and politeness grabbed the words before he could scream them out and potentially hurt Mizore's feelings. That was the last thing that he wanted to do. "No, no, just…wait a couple more days." Tsukune politely answered. He could feel his heartbeat, once speeding up now returning to its ordinary pace. "A lot's happened over the last couple of days."

"So, I'm not the only one who's seen a little action." She remarked with an air of amusement. Her tone further piqued Tsukune's curiosity as to what sort of guests she and her family had been dealing with. "Are you alright? No one's hurt you, have they?" The icy edge had creeped into her voice again, but there was a protectiveness in her voice as well.

That was definitely the Mizore that he'd gotten to know. "I'm fine, Mizore. I've been managing." The thought of telling her about all the new friends and people he'd met crossed his mind, but Tsukune figured those reveals might be best saved for an in-person meeting. Not to mention he'd rather explain everything that had happened once to all of them.

You'd rather take a bomb than a bunch of bullets?

He could have sworn there was a second presence on his bed, sitting right beside him. One's quick and brief, the other will drag on and on. I'd rather go for it in one blast. In contrast to his previous response, his mental voice was cool and collected. Again, he knew what he wanted to do and set out on doing it. He knew there'd be consequences to actions. Mizore was undoubtedly going to ask him why he didn't tell her any of this right now, at this very moment. He'd tell her the truth, that he wanted to speak to all of them. Now, would he tell her that he was also a little scared of what her reaction would be? That was debatable…but Tsukune had a feeling that he was going to have to tell her that. Her and the other girls.

The girls were his friends, but those friendships couldn't thrive when he was still walking on eggshells around them over certain topics. That included the topic of his humanity. Now that he was definitely going to wait to tell them all as a group, barring Moka who already knew.

"I'm going to do my retakes about…two days from now. If you can get in contact with the others, let them know." Tsukune declared.

"I'll try." The shy girl responded. "I've been able to get in contact with Kurumu and Yukari, but Moka-uh? What? Alright, I'll be right there! Tsukune, I'm so sorry but I gotta go."

"I know. I'll try to call you again some time over the next couple of days. Take care, Mizore, and goodnight."

"You too, goodnight, Tsukune."

He flipped the phone close and sat it down beside him. He felt like a weight had been both lifted off his shoulders and placed on it. For the latter, perhaps it was because he knew he was taking the first step toward coming clean. Despite the bonds between them, he'd kept secrets from his admirers. Now that even included Moka, who was until several days ago the only one who knew of his humanity. A steady breath in and out made him realize she was just the only person in his personal circle who knew of his human nature. Actually, even that was up for debate as Gin had long since figured it out…and thank God, he was fine with it. Tsukune couldn't help but wonder how Kurumu, Mizore, and Yukari would react to the revelation.

Succubi preyed on human men like spiders did flies. Likewise, yuki-onna were according to legend abductors of men in blizzards. Finally, witches…were rather infamous for their poor relationships with humans, and humans theirs. Yukari had outright told him she'd faced bullying from humans just as much as she had monsters.

Still, he held on to a glimmer of hope. She'd made monster friends, and even if she didn't know it, she had a human friend in him.

Speaking of friends…

"What about Moka?" he whispered in the seeming silence of his room. Flipping his phone back open he found himself dialing the number she'd given him. His mind racing, he held it to his ear and listened to the intermediary rings. This was the fifth time he'd tried calling her. The first time he hadn't been surprised, neither the second, it was the third time she failed to pickup that he started to worry, and wonder. Tsukune remembered the apprehension that had seized Moka when she spoke of her family.

"Hello?"

"M-Moka?"

"What? No! Don't ever call this number again, loser!"

Tsukune sat there, wondering what had just happened. Several seconds passed, turning into minutes during which he couldn't help but wonder who the hell he'd talked to. Well, talking was stretching it. It definitely wasn't Moka; the voice sounded younger and different, not to mention it was brimming with annoyance bordering on anger. For that reason he kept from trying to call back, knowing that he'd probably get an even worse response from…whoever that was. Even the curiosity of finding out who that girl was had been stomped out by the caution he felt.

Defeat was admitted to with a sigh.

"Maybe me and Mizore aren't the only ones having some adventures while we're on our own." Tsukune murmured. Maybe he could see if that was the case for Kurumu and Yukari. Ten minutes later and the thought had a little more backing as he couldn't reach either of them. Mizore had been the only one he was able to contact. "Guess I'll try again…hopefully after the retakes."

Least you'll have some good news to tell them.

"Good point." He brazenly said. His room, his private sanctum…where he could talk to his unknown inner voice and not feel completely weirded out. Or think he was crazy. Actually, maybe he was crazy. Groaning, he gently banged his head against the wall again. Raising the phone up he took a minute to admire the sleek black design. A temporary gift from Nikhil, who'd loaned it to him for the night. It was something else he was going to have to return in the morning.

Or he could keep it. Nikhil had left that avenue open for him.

"If you want to keep it, let me know. Just consider it a gift from a friend for making his stint at summer school exciting…and maybe one favor for being such a good student." The nāga had stated handing him the new model phone.

It was certainly a tempting idea to keep it. Tsukune had absolutely no idea where he'd find the money to get a Samsung Epic 4G, that was when it officially came out. Nikhil had been a little gleeful in telling him his family had gotten their hands on some models almost two months before they were posed to officially hit the market. He was holding one months early and practically for free. Thinking on that had Tsukune sharing in some of his nāga friend's joy.

"You know, maybe it wouldn't be so bad to keep this."

Oh, yessss! Do it! No way are we going to get a better phone for such a good deal!

Laughing, Tsukune wished that the voice had a physical form for him to look at. "Yeah, that's a damn good point." He admitted. "I would have to explain it to my parents, and Kyoko."

Tell them you made a rich, tech-savvy friend at school? Sure, they'd question how you'd pull something that off, but mom and dad would be over the moon, right?

"Yeah, an-hey. What do you mean they'd question how…you know what, never mind. I see your point. This sort of stuff doesn't happen to people like me." It always came back to that. Tsukune knew without a shadow of a doubt he was average, oh so painfully average. He was living a very unaverage life…and he was enjoying the finer parts of it. Sure, it hadn't all been sunshine and roses, but was anything worthwhile in life ever just those things? Looking back at the smartphone he realized that in a sense the phone hadn't came free. It was a sign of trust, trust that he'd had to fight and earn. "Thanks, Nikhil."

You should tell him that to his face…again.

"…Yeah, you're right." He admitted with a laugh. "You know…I still have no idea who or what you even are. If I ask you this time, will I get an answer?"

Honestly, he wasn't expecting an answer, but to his surprise he got one. Sorta.

Directly across from him he could see the figure coming into view. It was like looking into a mirror, on the other side was a perfect reflection. His pajamas, his hair, his eyes, practically everything about him…except for his eyes. There was something fundamentally different in his brown eyes, something…calmer, yet at the same time purer. Instead of a mirror, he felt like he was instead looking through a microscope, seeing what couldn't be seen by the naked eye.

True self…was that what he was looking at?

He blinked and the reflection was gone. Tsukune rubbed his eyes and looked back, then all around the room. There was no one except for him. Seemingly.

"Me…you're me, or precisely you're an aspect of me." The human teenager concluded. There wasn't an immediate response, even as he called out to the inner voice within him. It seemed that after that reveal it was done for the night. Tsukune was fine with that, he felt like maybe he'd had enough for one night. While he had a free day tomorrow, it was going to be spent doing some hard training with perhaps the greatest fighter he'd met at Yōkai Academy.

What was incredible was that he went to sleep looking forward to that training. In contrast to that eagerness, his sleep was calm and soothing. He welcomed the gentle abyss of sleep, as did several others across the school grounds. Such a thing had seemingly alluded them all over the past several days, but finally it had returned. All it had to do was stay for arguably three more days.

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2:12 AM…

What sorts of crazy things did people do when they got desperate? The answer was a lot, practically infinite in scoop. How likely were any of those desperate things to improve the current situation? Well, that was tricky. Sometimes, a seemingly good idea could just end up making things worse.

Kotsubo was sure that what he was doing was the latter, one of those things that would undoubtedly make his situation worse; in fact, if things went bad, he'd likely end up in a cell too. Or worse, he might end up dead. Headmaster Mikogami wasn't above more permanent and fatal punishments if the transgression was bad enough. Kotsubo was all but certain what he was doing would qualify as that.

A voice in his head whispered for him to turn back. That would have been the sane thing to do. Another voice countered that he couldn't afford to turn back. Even if he tried to pass everything off as normal he knew that Shigeki had dirt on him that would land him in hot water, potentially enough to boil his skin off, then his soul.

Coming to a temporary stop he ran his hands over his sweaty face. It wasn't the nightly heat that was making him sweat like a pig, it was his anxiety. Ever since he learned about the raid on Shigeki's underground base it'd been on high. With it had came paranoia that left him a fidgety wreck beneath a calm façade. Luckily no one had seen through it, but there was no telling how long it would last. It was going to crack eventually, and he felt he couldn't afford to wait for that to happen. Continuing his silent stride he looked all around him, hoping that he would remain unnoticed.

He did until he reached his destination.

"About time you came, I was beginning to wonder if I was going to have to send someone to get you." Despite being bound and imprisoned, Shigeki Kamiki looked still held on to some form of dignity. If one knew him on a semi-personal level, they wouldn't be surprised. His wings may have been figuratively and literally bound, but his will was unbroken. It was itching to get out and wreck vengeance on those that had imprisoned him.

That would be easier said than done given who those individuals were, one of whom Kotsubo would rather have seen spared.

So he could get his hands on her himself.

"I can't bust you out of here." He declared point-blank.

Shigeki rolled his eyes. "Then it's a good thing I wasn't planning on asking that of you. Trust me, prison breakouts are not your thing, Kotsubo."

His face bent into a sneer at the blatant show of disrespect. Frankly it wasn't surprising as Shigeki had never really respected Kotsubo. Being his gym teacher sure as hell didn't afford him that honor, nor did giving him a few optional hideouts throughout the academy and sometimes looking the other way to some of his actions. While seemingly minor, those actions were all solid ground for punishment, a punishment that he feared. Shigeki knew that and had no doubt bet on that fear being what would lead the kraken to him. He turned out to be right.

"Let's just skip to the point, what do you want me to do?" The redhead quietly snarled.

He would have appreciated it if Shigeki gave him an immediate answer. Instead, he dragged it out by closing his eyes to seemingly ponder it. Or just torture him for his own amusement.

Kotsubo found himself close to grabbing at the bars and screaming in the tengu's face. Every second he was here was a second more than he was in danger of being caught. Anxiety had changed into genuine fear and was coursing through him alongside his blood. The voice of apprehension in his head grew louder, screaming for him to simply cut his losses and run. Maybe reveal everything to the Headmaster and throw himself on the pyre of his potential mercy.

Just as he was genuinely thinking of doing that Shigeki glared at him. It was enough to freeze the adult man dead in his tracks. Even inside of a monster-proof cage and yōki-suppressing seals all over him Shigeki held a modicum of power. That power was enough to quell him. Really, it spoke volumes and completely disregarded the age gap between them.

This was one of the reasons he hated working with young men.

"How much do you value your job here at Yōkai Academy?" The young criminal heir casually asked.

"What? The hell kind of a question is that?" Kotsubo gasped.

"It's a question with a simple answer. How much do you value your job here at Yōkai Academy. The Headmaster chose you because you were a good PE and health teacher…but he's well aware of your shortcomings." Shigeki calmly and somewhat sinisterly said. Kotsubo knew he was building up to something, something that he wasn't looking forward to. "He left you out of today's raid, which included Tsukune Aono. Word is he's taken a liking to that human. That same human who's become quite a thorn in your side, Kotsubo."

As he finished speaking, he grinned as his words were sinking deep into the kraken's skin. His fists tightened and his eyes glowed with anger.

"Hurry up and get to the damn point!" He yelled in a hush. "The hell does this have anything to do with Tsukune Aono? I can kill him any time I want."

"That's doubtful. With that little knife of his, he could sever all your tentacles in a heartbeat." Flipped off the younger redhead. "I saw it, he's taken a liking to him. Since he's a human, there's no doubt he might try to fill his head with some crazy ideas, like trying to run this place like a human school. Would you be able to take that, Kotsubo? Human rules? All those restrictions? That seems to be the direction that the academy may be heading now that Mikogami and that human are getting so chummy. Not to mention he's getting pretty friendly with Ms. Ririko, wouldn't you say?"

The screw was pushed in deeper, and the kraken didn't like it. "That kid…there's no way-"

"I saw it with my own eyes, how she defended him. There was something there, a little more than just a teacher protecting her student. Be honest, Kotsubo, you know what she can be like, especially around goody-two-shoes like him." Shigeki pressed, his voice never quite rising. Based on how his lone audience was trembling in anger, there wasn't a need to. His soft-spoken words were having the desired effect. "If you try to go after Mizore Shirayuki again, he'll be there, and if he's there…Ms. Ririko will be too. Maybe not just her, notice how the guy seems to attract female attention like chum does sharks?"

Hearing that just made Kotsubo even madder. Shigeki cackled while in the confines of his cell. His physical and demonic power may have been restricted, but in the presence of his pawn on the faculty, he was still as mighty as ever. That was enough to make the rest of his stay in this cell manageable.

"Are you implying that I should…kill him?" The gym teacher finally said, more like whispered. It was clear he was very much considering doing so. With all the implications Shigeki was throwing at him and scenarios he was filling his head with, the age-old simplistic solution was looking mighty appealing. "If I did, how the hell would I be able to get away with it?"

"What if he were collateral damage, which is what humans like him so often are?"

"What?!"

There was clear enthusiasm for his plan now that it seemed he wouldn't be in danger of getting caught executing it. "I know you've got a stash of Stix; you may even have thought of taking one pill to give yourself the extra muscle needed to wrangle your more…unwilling prey. Well, instead of yourself, what if you gave it to others, your failing students and sent them on a little rampage? Surely Tsukune would rush out there to meet the crisis like he has before. There would be your opportunity." Shigeki explained with a cruel smile.

Kotsubo's jaw hung open at the plan. "I-I…I…."

"Don't stand there and tell me that you don't have some Stix stashed away."

"I…I do."

"Then use it. You've got experience in holding people down. Use it to hold down your students and force it into their system. They'll go on a little rampage and just like that, you'll have an opportunity to kill Tsukune. He tried to play hero then tragically dies as his luck has finally ran out." A humorous chuckle came at the end as Shigeki's merciless eyes peered straight into Kotsubo's soul. "Of course, it'll be up to you not to get caught."

"Like hell I'll get caught!" The older redhead barked, his voice rising for the first time. "Fine then, I'll pull off this little plan of yours…but what else will you give me out of it? Having him gone is a plus, but what else will you give me to sweeten the deal?"

"Hehehe, well, I can promise you a slight increase in your paycheck. Oh, say…a quadruple increase, how's that sound?" His eyes lit up. Shigeki knew he could have stopped there, but he decided it was better to be safe than sorry. "On my word, all your expenses at the Scarlet Embrace Night Club will be paid for, no matter how high they may be." Given his family's wealth, he was supremely confident that whatever bill Kotsubo racked up would be payable. Hell, the Kamiki Clan had spent centuries amassing wealth; they could buy a small country if they wanted to.

His words had done the job in bringing the gym teacher around. One look at his face and it was clear that he was completely enthralled by the benefits of this plan. Shigeki cackled against his coat. He may not have been able to escape expulsion, but he could hit Mikogami where it hurt. Not to mention the more bad press he got, the more pressure there would be on him from the monster world. As physically powerful as he might have been, Mikogami was still somewhat behold to public opinion. It could be a blessing and a curse, a curse that could strangle the life out of a person. Shigeki knew he could tighten it around the Kishin's neck until even it gave out. He found himself cackling with glee at the thought of watching the metaphorical air leaving him.

Sure, it might take a while and he'd likely be seeing it from a different school, but it'd be worth it.

"So then…I take it we have a deal?" The tengu arrogantly asked.

"Yes, we do." The gym teacher informed. "When do you want me to implement this little plan? During the retakes…or tomorrow?"

"During the retakes. Given Mikogami a false sense of security, not to mention he'll have to prolong the summer school term, which wouldn't make parents happy." Shigeki answered. "Think you can hold yourself together until then?"

Kotsubo snorted. "Stop talking like I'm some raging beast who can hardly control himself."

Shigeki's loud laughter rung through the cell block, something that made Kotsubo quite alarmed. He looked in both directions, the confidence gone and his gaze wide and fearful.

"Jumpy, aren't you?" The tengu casually remarked.

"Gah! That's it! We have a deal so I'm going home for the night! Don't expect me to be there when they ship you back!" Kotsubo barked. "I'm sure you'll contact me when the time comes."

"Oh, I will." Shigeki asserted. "Sleep well, Kotsubo."

"I'm the one who should be telling you that. After all, I'm the one who's going back to a nice regular 'ole bed." Kotsubo spat.

Shigeki sat up, looking at him through the darkness of his cell. "I'm going to sleep with a clear mind. You on the other hand, I imagine you'll be having a tough time getting to sleep. Even with the rewards waiting for you at the end. Provided you live to see them."

That shut Kotsubo up, arguably for the rest of the night. Once more, Shigeki's words had penetrated deep into his soul, chilling it to the core. Seeing that freeze was enough to make Shigeki laugh again. For the sake of his frozen ally, he kept his laughter low. Ironically, that served to make the kraken feel all the more terrified. He could have been in his true form, yet Shigeki could still hold him in the palm of his hand, as the great Buddha held the Monkey King.

Like Shigeki had said, he was the one who'd be getting the good night sleep, even if it was in a cell. Putting his hands behind his head he laid back and peacefully drifted off to sleep. He was fast a slumber before Kotsubo had even made it out of the cellblock. Upon making it out he double-checked all around, the tengu's words ringing in his head. They would continue to ring, keeping him up for the next hour. Only when dawn broke would Kotsubo feel the edges of sleep pulling at him, and even then, it would take some time for him to fall asleep.

But there would be no peace for him there.

---

"And that's what we have to deal with on the day of retakes. What's our move, boss?"

Kinmaru liked his sleep, but he knew sometimes it wasn't possible. Sometimes business didn't have off hours. He'd learned that watching his parents, his grandmother, and he'd learned it himself.

"As enjoyable as these last couple of days have been, I think it's time we brought an end to this little saga. I'm ready to move on, and frankly I'm sure you're all in the mood for change in scenery, aren't you?"

"With all due respect, no shit boss, I'd rather be looking at blue water instead of the same crappy food-dye red."

"Actually, it's-"

"Jūtarō, man, I know but seriously! It's two-thirty in the morning! I don't have the patience for it!"

Like that, the tense mood was broken. Kinmaru hung his head and joined his comrades in jubilant laughter. The banter between his nekotama and his satori; whatever the situation, he felt he could always look to the two of them to lighten the mood. Perhaps it was inevitable given Hidemaro and Jūtarō's opposite personalities. Funny enough, that's also what made them such good friends.

He ran a tight crew, people that he trusted with his life and dreams. Finding such people wasn't easy. Kinmaru considered loyalty and capability more important than anything else, including race. Ironically, that quota sometimes made him loss out on those who had some gold shine and substance to them. It was all too common to meet monsters who refused to work alongside humans, or half-humans. Sparing a glance to his left, he saw Kaku chuckling at the banter between the nekotama and satori. Honestly…he'd take the half-kitsune over some of the finest enforces Yōkai or the criminal underworld had to offer.

Hell, he'd take every member of his team over them.

Hitori, his half-brother who'd stuck with him through thick and then.

Mitsugu, who he'd accepted when others had shunned him for his half-human heritage. Much like Kaku, he didn't see a flaw, all he saw were his eyes in the sky and one of his oldest friends.

Kenki, who was the best swimmer he'd ever seen. If he was put up against a full-blooded kappa, he'd bet on the orange-haired halfing every time.

Only he, Hidemaro, and Jūtarō were full-blooded yokai. Three out of their seven-man band, the other four were of mixed human and monster ancestry. To many other groups within and outside of the academy, they were quite an eyesore. Only the Monstrels seemed to give them any time of day, and that was still a loose alliance. After all, they both wanted to rule the school.

Kinmaru considered it fortunate that almost all of them had taken leave with most of the students. It made his operations a lot easier, not to mention it was one less enemy to deal with.

Speaking of enemies, just as he thought, Shigeki was down but not out. As atypical of him, he was going to take parting shot at the Headmaster, and his beloved school, as he was on his way out the door. Kinmaru could definitely understand the logic behind it, hell, he'd have done something similar if he were in that position. Under other circumstances he'd be content with letting Shigeki get his licks in, but maybe he'd gotten a bit territorial of Yōkai Academy.

Or maybe it was the potential stash of Stix that Shigeki had ordered wasted on a bunch of losers who'd burn out and splatter their blood over the school grounds.

Clasping his hands together he brought the other six boys' attention onto him. "We're going to keep eyes on Kotsubo. We're not going to let him pull off his little stunt."

"Whelp, Kaku, you wanna do it or you want me to?" Mitsugu asked. "You've still got some tutoring to do, so I'll take your spot."

The half-kitsune shook his head. "No, I'll do it. According to what Jūtarō saw, he's going to be a paranoid wreck for the next couple of days. He'll be double-checking every shadow around him. This'll be good practice for me."

Hitori chuckled and playfully hit him on the shoulder. "Never miss a chance to grow, right?"

"Hey, you follow the same saying. Between the two of you though, I'll say you're probably the better man for the job." Mitsugu stuck his tongue out in mock annoyance, getting a chuckle from the rest of the team.

Kinmaru fixed Kaku with a hard stare. "If you have to kill him, do it. I'll deal with whatever blowback comes our way. Jūtarō read his mind and we can take his word to the Headmaster if need be."

Mitsugu shook his head. "Really wish we'd recorded him leaving. That way we could have used it as leverage over so we could use him as our lackey."

Kenki's face screwed up. "Eh, no thanks. I'd rather take one of the bug people than him."

"I'm with Kenki on this one. With all due respect boss, we can do better than a piece of shit like him." The team's mind-reader and smart man spoke up.

"Well, the good news is we won't be having to turn him. I'm going to predict that he'll bite the dust before the next semester even starts."

"Really, boss? Kotsubo's lasted the last couple of years pulling this shit?" Mitsugu inquired with a raised eyebrow. "You think Aono's going to be the one to finally punch his ticket?"

"Or cripple him like he did Saizō." Kenki offered. His lips curved upward in a relieved smile that spoke volumes about how he felt regarding the orc and his crippling. "Still wish I could have seen it. You definitely made the right choice in giving him that knife."

"Yeah, but remember, he can still shack any of us using it…provided he ever got close enough, and still had both arms." Hidemaro interjected. His smile was noticeably more insidious. Instead of the already written past he may have been looking to the future. A future where Tsukune Aono turned on them and tried to put an end to them; the nekotama was confident he wouldn't get far. Especially once he was deprived of all his limps. His wistful thinking was ended as he stretched his arms up in a yawn. "Can we call it a night, guys? I'd really like to go back to sleep."

One look around the group told Kinmaru that the sentiment was shared. While he was prepared for it, Kinmaru himself would have enjoyed going back to sleep. He'd stated their plan to deal with Kotsubo, there was no need to prolong this. "Back to the dorms then. Try to get some rest, everyone." There was a murmur of quiet approval from the other six boys.

Kinmaru glanced up at the blood red crescent moon that hung in the sky, the artificial sky. It was undoubtedly fitting for a school for monsters…but the coloration was off. A result of the pocket dimension that they all lived in for most of the year. Kinmaru preferred the real moon, the pale white, the enticing gold, and sometimes ghostly blue it could take. Seeing that myriad of colors was one of the things he was looking forward to leaving behind in summer school.

This has been fun, but I have a feeling it's time we all headed out. Everyone wants to get back to the real world. I'm a little peeved you'll see it first, Shigeki, but I can get back at you by keeping fucking up your plans. The oni thought to himself. If we get that final battle…I want it to be out there. I want to rip your wings off and stuff them down your throat beneath the real moon's light…or the heat of the actual sun.

---

Three Days Later, 8:11 AM…

The day of exam retakes it felt like the sun was hotter than usual. One might wonder if the school's barrier was malfunctioning, but Ririko knew it wasn't anything of the sort. It was simply collective anxiety. It happened every time testing came.

Exams were the bane of the modern teenager. Some people could handle the pressure, others couldn't. Some succeeded and some failed. For the latter, exam time was nothing short of hell.

Ririko supposed that made her one of the devils that ran the place or administer the torture. Honestly, she hated the comparison, but she couldn't help but find it fitting. She could also be the angel who gave them salvation.

So, if they failed who was there to blame? Them or her?

She tried not to think about failure, especially at times like now. These students had been studying for the last several days so they could finally leave the academy and head back out into the outside world. They'd all so eagerly stated as much, even to her face. Personally, Ririko would have liked to leave work and enjoy what vacation time summer allotted her. Even teachers had private lives.

Ririko wasn't one of the types to open herself up to her students, not often. That said, there were a handful that she did open herself up to…and one of those students was in her class. The second that Tsukune walked into class she looked straight at him, and he looked straight at her. A hundred different things wanted to be said between them but given the circumstances nothing could be said. They'd have to wait until after class. Ririko tried not to think about how her heart ached a little at that fact. Waiting to talk to Tsukune alone, and about something other than schoolwork?

Except they'd talked about that sort of stuff before, just the day before in fact during one of their private study sessions. The memory made her grow hotter in her collared shirt. Over the past couple of days, she'd dressed appropriately for the weather. That had included forgoing stockings like she normally wore. People already liked looking at her legs, but the sight of them bare of any obstruction had some onlookers gaping like fish. Ririko was glad that she'd be sitting behind her desk for most of the day, her students needed to focus on their retakes.

Tsukune was clearly doing so. After that momentary eye contact, he was sitting at his desk and waiting for the test to be handed out. He didn't look her in the eye when she handed the sheets down onto his desk. A small part of her was happy about that, she wasn't sure it was a good idea if they looked at each other for any longer than a few seconds.

Unfortunately, her resolve wasn't as ironclad as she'd hoped. After explaining the rules and wishing them all luck, Ririko found herself continuously gazing in Tsukune's direction. Days ago, she'd have judged him to be one of the students who needed help the most, she'd thought he'd be one of the ones making faces of dismay and despair as he ran into an unsolvable problem. Instead, he was one of the ones keeping his cool as he moved from one problem to another. She could practically feel it, and picture what he was writing down.

In the depths of her heart, she was confident that Tsukune was going to pass, and not just pass but excel.

Stop it. You should be hoping for all of them to pass, not just one of them. Her professionalism sounded. She tried to look at the other students to gauge how they were doing. As she expected, a handful had looks of dismay on their faces indicating they were struggling. Ririko couldn't blame them. Maybe they're not ready. All these incidents may have made it too hard for them to concentrate, even with the break. Maybe I need to rethink some of the tutoring guides. Just as quickly as she'd begun to lose herself in her thoughts, she spotted an approaching student, Shogo Nonaka. Ririko managed an encouraging smile that he returned before turning back to his seat.

Ten o'clock, that's when this first session of testing would end. It wasn't uncommon for students from this first session to go into the second, and then maybe the third, albeit that last one was a rarity. As a rule, she preferred a wrong answer to no answer. An answer being something as simple as random number. She hated finding little doodles where numbers should have been. Ririko disliked it so much she'd came close to making it a rule, but she couldn't codify it unless the other math teachers signed off on it as well.

Shogo was the first one to finish at thirty minutes. Not at all a bad time, but far from the best. She'd actually had some students finish in as little as fifteen minutes, and actually pass. One that was constant was after the first student finished, the rest began to follow like a trickling stream. Ten minutes later and the second and third students turned in their exams. That left sixteen students left.

Tsukune ended up being number eight. Ririko watched him rise from his seat, looking rather composed and confident. Several sets of eyes went to him, namely Audrey, Gin, and Daiki's. All of them smiled, supremely confident that he was going to pass. As per protocol, Tsukune didn't look back at them, but he would have if he could have. His dark brown eyes ended up looking into hers. Ririko felt her heat beat spiking, accelerating with every step he took toward her desk.

When she examined his paper, she knew she'd be looking at the cumulating of all their time together.

Why did she get sad at the thought of that time coming to an end?

Because it has, and it has to end. Spoke again the professional teacher within her. It looked on in acceptance as Tsukune placed his test down on her desk. Opposite of her was…another side of her, one that watched the paper fall in horror. She wasn't' ready for their time together to end.

They looked straight into each other's eyes and smiled. It was the first time they'd done so all day. And then the moment was over with.

His attention was focused down on a book he'd brought. Ririko couldn't quite get a look at it, but it didn't matter. He had something to do for the next hour, something peaceful. Ririko turned her attention to his three friends.

Amongst the three of them, Daiki had done the best with Gin in second and Audrey in last place, scoring a lowly twenty-five. The girl was in dire need of help, and she was confident that Tsukune had given her his best. She was likewise sure that his best would be enough to get her over the finish line.

KNOCK! KNOCK!

"Come in." Ririko called. Every one of her students were present, and she doubted any last-minute additions had been made. When Shizuka popped her head out the door she did a double-take. She was the last person she was expecting to see. "What is it? What's going on?"

"Um, I'm not sure, but the Headmaster asked for you in his office. Something about…Mr. Kotsubo."

Ririko's eyes widened. "Can I leave you to look after them? All you have to do is keep them working and collect the tests."

"I'll do it." The feline woman affirmed. "Just, um, be careful. I've got a bad feeling about this."

Her best friend's feelings were more than likely verifiable. While she hadn't seen much of Kotsubo over the last couple of days she'd noticed something a little…off about him. Was he upset that he'd been left out of the loop on the raid? He shouldn't have been, he was one of the last people to be let near defenseless people, especially women. Even he must have realized that.

After announcing she would be temporarily stepping out, she headed for the door. Ririko pondered on if she was right to look back. She knew if she did her eyes would zero in on one student in particular. The fear of that led her to deciding not to look back. She walked out the door and sped down the hallway to the Headmaster's office. She had no idea what awaited her, but she was all but certain it wasn't going to be good.

-O-

Seeing Hinoi standing in front of the Headmaster's desk with a stern gaze confirmed it, something had gone wrong. Something had gone horribly wrong.

Hinoi's fiery gaze locked in on Ririko. "He's finally cracked, Ririko. I'll give you the short version, we got a tip off that Kotsubo was planning on drugging a bunch of students during their retakes. We have the evidence here." She held up a bag containing a bunch of black pills. Ririko's eyes widened as she grabbed them and examined them down to the last detail. Once she was finished her glare matched that of the female oni's. "Apparently, Kotsubo knows the jig is up. He's hold up in his office."

An eyebrow was raised. "And you haven't hauled him out yet? Come on, this is Kotsubo we're talking about."

"We're trying to be discrete while doing this. As you know, testing is going on." The Headmaster declared. He was clearly unhappy with this turn of events, but as always, he was keeping a cool head. "He's put up a rather strong barrier in front of the door, one made out of strange coral."

Ririko's jaw fell open. "Coral? Impossible! Kotsubo's nowhere near the level of power required for that!" Her eyes widened a second later as the truth dawned on her. She looked from her superior to her coworker then back to the buddle of pills in her hands. "Where…"

"Our…source told us that Kotsubo's also been a mole for Shigeki. You gotta admit, it explains a few things, doesn't it?" Hinoi declared. "Ririko, we've thought about breaking it down, but he's been asking for you. Any reason why?"

"Do you really have to ask?" The lamia drily retorted.

"Well, as bad as you can get, you've always had standards." The history teacher remarked. Ririko gave her a short laugh as thanks for the compliment. Hinoi chuckled, then put on her serious face again. "If you fail, I'm going to just blow the door down…and if need be, kill him."

The thought of her coworkers killing each other should have horrified her; it'd have horrified a normal teacher. Yōkai Academy certainly wasn't a normal school, but it had rules. Albeit rules that were only loosely enforced most of the time, but still rules none the less. One of those rules was no intense fighting between faculty. The students fighting each other was bad enough, but they, teachers? Guides of their young charges killing each other in disputes? It was madness.

But all Ririko felt was just a quiet, almost hollow like acceptance. She was a logical woman, and the evidence was staring her in the face. Because she was a logical woman she was also able to see how the future would play out if something wasn't done.

Kotsubo was a danger to the school, he always had been. And she'd let him go time and time again.

Mizore's face appeared in her mind, with it came a sharp sense regret that stung at her heart.

Both her arms fell to her side as she inhaled and exhaled. "You said he's asking for me, take me to him. If I can talk him down…good. If not…." With a steely gaze behind her glasses, she turned to face Hinoi. "We both know this was a possibility someday."

Behind his desk, the Headmaster bowed his head. It seemed he was acknowledging that the latter possibility was the one that was going to become a reality. Maybe he did as he knew the situation better than her. Not to mention if push came to shove…he would step in. If he did, it didn't matter what drug Kotsubo was hyped up on, it wouldn't do any good.

He went against the Headmaster's authority, and if he wasn't dead at the end of this, he'd be wishing he was.

---

As one would expect, coral was associated with water. Actually, not just water but the sea. Krakens were monsters native to the ocean, and some of the nastiest monsters one could encounter out in open water. They'd inhabited the world for centuries, millennia even. Stories of them had filled myths and legends, particularly in Europe, especially northern Europe. It's said that's where the first krakens were born. They possessed powers that far outstripped other creatures, making them all the more fitting of their terrible reputation.

Kotsubo had not nor would he ever be one of those krakens. Very, very few of them possessed that level of power.

Sea magic was one of the ways coral could be spawned. Its appearance could vary, as could their nature. Magically-generated coral could be harder than steel, which made it a colossal pain to deal with. Other types of coral could spawn deadly gas that could knockout a B-Class monster, or even outright kill them.

Ririko had no idea what sort of coral she was looking at, but she knew it was dangerous. It glowed an unearthly mixture of black and red. Just smelling it reminded her of polluted water; the werewolf guards that had been called up were holding their noses in disgust. No, not just them, several other monsters were holding their noses as well. Ririko was grateful she didn't have such an acute sense of smell, times like this is when that ability became a liability.

She stepped forward, her low-heeled shows clacking against the coral-infested floor. It was spreading out from Kotsubo's office, which was now an earthly mixture of black, gray, and red. The thing looked like something out of a deep sea temple…and here she was walking right up to it.

Hinoi and the others waited behind her, ready to move at a moment's notice. She had one of her whips just in case. A whip that had been infused with lightning magic. As a kraken, Kotsubo's would be vulnerable to the magical electricity. She could stun him and paralyze all his tentacles.

"Kotsubo!" She called. There were a few vents opened up, no doubt so he could speak and hear what was going on outside of his little bunker. "What the hell is this?" Ririko continued in a low voice. "I've heard you were planning on drugging some students during their retakes. Even for you, that's-"

"You were tutoring him, right?"

The voice was ragged and disjointed. Just from hearing it Ririko could tell her soon-to-be former colleague wasn't in his right mind.

"He who, Kotsubo? I've been tutoring a lot of students." Ririko asked. She knew that one wrong move and this whole situation could probably go bad.

At his growl all the coral around her seemed to vibrate, as if it were responding to his emotions. "Tsukune…Aono. That fucking…human! He's a human!"

It was a blessing that everyone present were part of the Headmaster's inner circle. They were also keeping the Safety Commission out; if they heard Kotsubo's screaming then Tsukune would be in deep trouble. They'd likely be able to smuggle him out of the school, but he'd never be able to come back to Yōkai Academy again. That'd be the end of his time there with all of them.

Slowly reaching for her whip, Ririko spoke in her same cool voice. "He's still a student, he's still one of my students, Kotsubo."

"…He's…your…your…gah! Of all the people, why him! WHY?!" The short hallway shook with the vibrations from his scream, a vengeful sound that further cemented how off the deep end he was.

Disregarding the bead of sweat running down her brow, Ririko managed to remain calm. "Why what, Kotsubo? Don't tell me you think there's something going on between the two of us."

"Why not? You've always been so…touchy-feely with students, especially those you tutor. Including those…half-breed little shits!"

Her first impulse was to fire back at him. His accusations were as hypocritical as they were false. He didn't have a problem setting his sights on girls who were half-human. Clearly these accusations were coming from somewhere else, somewhere she could venture a guess at. Ririko felt her stomach rumbling in disgust while her mind questioned why she'd let things get this far. Her grip on her whip tightened.

"Half-breed or full-breed, they're my students and it's my job to teach them, and protect them." She bit her tongue in saying as a teacher he had the same obligations. Ririko had a feeling that might set him off. "Kotsubo…stop this now. Stop while you've got a chance of walking out of this alive."

"You mean stop me before I can get to your little human pet? Why should I, Ririko?" Came his snarl of a reply. "Him and that other one, that little half-breed kitsune that you like so much. It was him, wasn't it! You've been fucking him too, haven't you! That's why he's so obedient to you, even over his own boss!"

Hearing Kaku brought up in such a disrespectful manner was almost enough to make Ririko lose control. Holding onto her restraint wasn't easy, but she'd came here knowing that. She had to hold on. "Kotsubo, just tell me what you want. Like I said, you've still got a chance of walking out of this with your life."

"My life…I was supposed to still have that, I would have if that little punk hadn't gotten in my way! He snuck into my fucking room! Students aren't supposed to do that! They're not! We're teachers! They're supposed to listen to us!" The coral-filled hallway began to…squirm. Again, no doubt it was reacting to Kotsubo's heightened emotional state. "This school is ours!"

Her own emotions were starting to seep through. The sparks surrounding her whip grew as they became the outlet for her building emotions. If Kotsubo could see them then he would have known his words were inciting a reaction, one he may not have been happy with.

"This school," the math teacher began. "Is the Headmaster's, and it's our job as teachers to guide and mentor the students that come through its doors. Not take advantage of them for our own gain."

"…What…what the fucking hell did he do to you, Ririko?" His voice sounded almost sorrowful.

It actually invoked those feelings within her. Had she really been that far off the path she'd chosen before getting close to Tsukune? Her internal musing was shoved aside as she refocused on the dilemma at hand. Ririko could sense the hostility building up around her. "He helped me reevaluate myself. This isn't about me though, Kotsubo-"

"You're the sexiest woman at this school, you always have been." The naked lust in his voice made her skin crawl more so than it ever had. "You should have been mine from day one. I should have snatched you up before some other asshole could have."

"Ririko, get down!"

"I WON'T LET THAT HUMAN BASTARD TAKE YOU FROM ME! YOU'RE MINE, YOU STUPID WHORE!"

She ducked as the mystical fireball sailed across the air and smashed into the coral-covered wall. While it succeeded in scorching it, the wall wasn't blown apart. Not from the outside. From the other end came a deluge of blue and black-colored water. Ririko's arms widened and her grip on her whip became tighter than ever as she swung it upward.

The next thing she knew, her world was grimy, sticky water that filled her stomach, literally.

---

9:46 AM…

When Ms. Ririko didn't come back for the first ten minutes, Tsukune knew something was wrong. It was a gut feeling that he knew to be on the money. Something had happened, something had gone wrong.

Looking to his left he locked eyes with Gin and Audrey. On his right he stared at Daiki. In the last minute or two all three of them had finished up, meaning in a sense they were good to go.

That was a plus as seconds after making eye contact with them, the whole classroom shook. As several students jumped from their seats, the classroom's protection spell activated. A translucent green wall shimmered around it, a sign of the classroom's safeguard. Not to mention it was a sign of how serious things were.

While Ms. Nekonome tried to keep everyone calm, Tsukune pulled his phone out and placed a call.

"Nikhil! Anything happening on the outside?" Daiki, Audrey, and Gin all gathered around him to get brought up to speed on the situation.

"Invasion by sea coral! And monsters!" From the background sounds they could hear the sounds of battle. They'd gotten used to it over the last four days. It seemed a fight was breaking out every day. "These monsters, this coral, all of it has been enhanced by Stix! And the water! Watch out for the water!"

"Water? What the hell do you mean?" Gin shouted trying to get a bead on the situation like the others.

"Waterspouts! Poisonous water at that!" The Indian student shouted. "Whoever is doing this is-"

"G-Gaaaah! Flood! There's a fucking flood inside the school!"

The four teens looked up to see the classroom's protection spell holding against a sudden rush of black-tinted water. Everyone backed away against it, Ms. Nekonome outright grabbing some students and pulling them away. Through the windows they could see the black water rushing down the hallway. It was indeed like an actual flood, a flood inside the school building.

"Jeez! That shit's foul! What happened, someone cast a spell on the sewage system!" Gin howled while covering his nose.

Daiki was right there with him. His feline senses were being used against him as well. "Shit, this happens the day of retakes, and after we got a couple of days of peace! Who the hell are we dealing with now! Is it Shigeki?"

"Don't know! I'll call you when I find out! For now-!"

CRUNCH!

"Nikhil? Nikhil! Dammit!" Daiki's fist came down hard on the desk, cracking it with the force of his rage. Tsukune looked at him and knew, retakes or not, his academic future or not, he was going out there. Nikhil was his best friend and nothing was going to stop him from looking after him.

It was a sentiment Tsukune understand well and sympathize with.

"Daiki, do you have a glyph that can protect us from that stuff?" The human questioned.

At his nod they all turned to the door. Surprisingly, they could see the water receding, but it's left its mark. Still holding his nose, Gin walked up to get a closer look. He called out to the others, warning them that the water may be acidic given some of the acid burns that had been left in the hallway. Walking up alongside him, Tsukune knew their journey wasn't going to be an easy one. Especially since he could still hear the sound of water rushing through the building. It was present alongside what sounded like cracking, plaster and floor tiles cracking.

"Daiki, we're going to need one hell of protection spell." Tsukune called.

"Protection spell, wait just a minute!" Shizuka Nekonome was one of the most likable teachers in the entire school. A great deal of that was due to the fact she actually cared about the students. That care was on fully display as she marched toward them, not a lick of her usual airheaded demeanor to be found. "Tsukune, Gin, Daiki, Audrey, the school's on lockdown! You can't go out there, you could end up getting hurt or killed!"

"We know." Audrey affirmed in a voice laced with sadness. That sadness changed into determination within seconds. "But we still go! Nikhil outside!"

"Yeah, besides, it's not like this'll be our first time charging into the dangerous unknown." Gin added. "Plus, we all finished our retakes!"

"That doesn't matter! It's dangerous out there!" She shouted.

"With all due respect, Ms. Nekonome, it was dangerous in Shigeki's lab, but we still went. I won't say if this situation is just as bad, worse, or whatever, but we know something's wrong and we're going. A friend of ours is there." Tsukune had every intention of stepping out the door and braving the danger, just like his friends. He kept the fact that they were all looking to him for to take the lead to himself. It wasn't just them. Out of the corner of his vision he saw almost all the remaining students look at him in slack-jawed awe. "We promise, we'll be careful." He passionately declared upon turning his full focus on the teacher.

The feline woman knew there was no way she could stop them. The second she tried to stop one the other three would go for the door, and the one she tried to stop would likely wrestle out of her grip. That included Tsukune.

Biting her lip, the cat woman hung her head in defeat, but only for a second. Her eyes were open, revealing the feline silts. They were glittering with raw determination. "You four had better come back! Your tests have to be graded! You can't die before that happens, do you all understand?"

"We got it!" Daiki shouted, a little impatiently. It was hard to blame him since the classroom was still shacking, albeit not as badly as it had before. While they were talking whatever was happening outside was still going on.

After a nod of approval, the four teenagers rushed out the door. Some of their classmates shouted encouragement as they went.

"Seems like we can't get through summer school without something going to shit, huh?" Gin called to his human friend.

"Yeah, but here's hoping this is the last time. I mean, we just finished our retakes, right?" He replied. "We're going to have some stories to tell the girls when we meet up with them again, huh?" He was pulling out his smartphone while Gin belched out a laugh. Out in the hallway he could smell it better than before, the rank odor of pollution mixed with something else, blood. The phone had a tracking feature that they were hoping to make use of. They were hoping Nikhil wasn't too far away from where the phone had been before it was likely destroyed.

One second later and that hope, that plan, went out the window.

Daiki sensed the incoming attack and moved on pure impulse. Shouting Audrey's name, he pulled her aside, just as the fleshy tentacle burst through the walls to strike at her. Upon failing, the tentacle moved to strike again. The spiky-haired brunette's arm morphed into a bestial claw he used to swipe at the attacking limb. Just as he did so, the tentacle twisted revealing suctions on the side, they expelled a burst of blacken mist that stopped Daiki's attack dead in its tracks. His eyes widened and his face screwed up as the mist passed from his arm into his nostrils. Cursing, he stumbled back, and that was when the tentacle move to wrap around his arm. Daiki screamed in pain as the black and red seemingly burned his skin.

Summoning his knife, Tsukune dashed for the tentacle, cutting through it in one swoop. His eyes narrowed as he saw black-tinted blood spill from the severed limb. There wasn't much time to dwell on it as he sensed danger coming from behind. Spinning around he saw several more tentacles rushing at them. Tsukune rushed forward to sever them, doing so in the blink of an eye.

It wasn't just tentacles they had to deal with, it was…coral?

Coral?

Stocks of it burst from the ceiling and walls. From them came more bursts of mist that quickly began to fill the hallway.

"Ah shit! This is bad, really, really bad!" Gin wasn't sure he could cover his nose anymore. There was little they could do to defend against the air itself.

Or that's what he thought until Tsukune raised his knife and poured his energy into it. The knife's luminous radiance burned away the approaching mist and seemingly caused the coral itself to lose its constitution. If Tsukune were to guess, it'd shatter like glass if he it with his knife. That just left the tentacles, which recoiled like living creatures.

"Well, now I'm really, really glad Kinmaru gave you that knife." Daiki laughed, though his voice was more of a grunt. Looking back Tsukune saw his forearm was discolored on top of appearing burnt. Until they got it looked it, it'd be useless. He didn't dare think about what would happen if he took any more hits from those tentacles. "Guess we can all agree Tsukune's taking point."

"TSUKUNE!"

The human's eyes widened, then immediately narrowed as he sneered at the distant tentacle. He'd became used to hearing his name shouted by an inhuman mouth, often with ginormous levels of disdain thrown into the mix, and perhaps a little bit of hunger. His knife maintained its wondrous shine as he slowly inched toward the tentacle.

"Kotsubo," he called. Ordinarily he'd have spoken the honorific, but he was way past that by now. "What the hell is this? Did you take Stix?"

"Because of you!" The kraken's voice sounded through his tentacle. It was keeping its distance from him, no doubt because of his knife. "All of this is because of you, you little bastard!"

He could sense Gin getting ready to attack, only to be stopped when the human threw out his left hand. Tsukune never took his eyes off the lone tentacle. "Then let's settle this! Just you and me! No one else has to get hurt!"

"What the hell, Tsukune!" Gin called.

"Dude, you can't be serious! We can't trust this asshole!" Daiki barked.

They both had a point. It's not like Kotsubo was a bastion of honesty, but Tsukune was willing to venture a guess that he was acting on his innermost feelings. Said feelings being hatred, potentially of him. It was a gamble that could end badly for him, but Tsukune found it was one he was willing to take. Maybe it was a bit of arrogance mixing with his bleeding heart concern.

"Together. We go…together." Audrey sounded, looking just as determined as the others.

"Ahh, another bitch to your harem, and a foreigner at that." Came Kotsubo's disdain-laced voice.

His words got an immediate reaction from the four, including Audrey herself. Ironically, she looked the least upset, it was her friends who were brimming with fury. Both Daiki and Gin were on the verge of transforming into their true bestial selves while Tsukune had a look of burning rage on his face. He so very much wanted to drive his knife deep into Kotsubo's tentacles, then his main body. The thought made his blood race with murderous heat that transfers into his knife. His holy weapon glowed brighter, even as it was fueled by rather wrathful thoughts. There was a chance an exception was being made given who his would-be target was.

Tsukune regained his composure faster than his male friends. "If you can get past me, you can take a crack at Audrey. Granted, the last time you went after a young girl, you wound up in the infirmary. This time it'll be worse for you. Audrey won't hesitate to do what Mizore should have."

The bait worked as the hallway shook, an indicator that Kotsubo had perhaps worked his tentacles and his coral through it. A quick glance to the left and he saw that the classroom was still protected. If he could get the others into it then he wouldn't have to worry about them.

"Kill you…after I kill you…she'll be mine. They all will be." Came the deranged gym teacher's growl. "Come to the cliffs. I'll drag you down like I should have before! I'll drown you until your lungs burst!"

Quickly turning to Gin, Tsukune spoke in a firm voice. "Stay inside. I'll call if anything happens."

The werewolf's own gaze was just as hard. "Hell no."

Looking back at Daiki, Tsukune examined his arm. Veins were beginning to spread up his arm; he immediately knew it was poison. "At least get Daiki's arm looked at. If I'm not back in five minutes…well, don't hold back."

Gin stared hard into Tsukune's eyes. While they may not have gotten off on the best foot, the two had formed a genuine friendship. That made it hard for the werewolf to let his friend go on this obviously suicidal mission. He knew better than most that Kotsubo wasn't amongst the best of the school's faculty. Hell, Gin knew he was probably dangerously close to the top ten worst teachers at the school. He'd always subconsciously told himself he'd never sink to his level, forcing himself on the unwilling and even the underaged.

Deep within the werewolf, the flower of regret blossomed.

I hate doing this…I hate the fact that I could have stopped him and saved Mizore from that whole misunderstanding. I didn't though and you had to clean it up, Tsukune. He privately thought. "Alright, we'll get Daiki looked at, then we're coming after you."

"Not okay with this. Not at all, but…I know…you can take him." Sounded the British student. Temporarily breaking away from Daiki, she walked over and fist-bumped Tsukune. "Kick his ass!" Her perfectly executed Japanese was enough to get the three other boys to laugh.

In Daiki's case it was pained, another clear indicator it might have been best for him to sit this one out, at least temporarily. "Come here, Tsukune. I can concentrate enough to put a protection glyph on you. Based on how rotten my arm's feeling, you're probably going to need it." He used his left hand to cast it, muttering in ancient Egyptian and infusing the hieroglyph with mystical power. "Like Audrey said, kick his ass, or at least hold him off until we can get there. I'm looking forward to paying that bastard back with interest!"

With a smile he turned and ran down the hallway, clenching his knife as tightly as he could. This run, this sprint headlong into danger was familiar to him. What was new was the sense of confidence he had as he took one step after another, down flights of stairs to the door. There was still some fear there, but it'd taken a backseat in his soul.

Hey, at least he's a giant octopus instead of a starfish. If he was a starfish you'd be screwed.

Yeah, you've got a point there. It's weird though. Most people would think of octopuses as being far worse, especially when they're literally out for your blood.

Hahaha! It's not the first time you've had someone out for your blood. But also…most people have never had a starfish trying to eat their face.

Tsukune pushed that childhood memory as far from the forefront of his mind as possible. He had plans to make some new, better beachside memories, and he was going to make those plans a reality. Even if it meant standing atop the corpse of a giant, out of control squid.

-O-

Instead of the sea, Tsukune felt more like he was running deeper into a swamp. He spotted wet splotches and puddles all across the ground, but the foul odor they gave off kept him from examining them for too long. If he did, he might end up losing his sense of smell. That possibility existed if he stopped and examined the coral too.

He'd seen patches of coral as he ran through the school, but the closer he got to the coast the more of it he saw. Some of it looked to be in definite shapes-the shape of humanoids. Tsukune quickly realized they must have been some sort of clones; there was even a possibility they were the monsters Nikhil and the others were fighting. As he ran Tsukune wondered if Kotsubo was keeping them from going after him or if he was directing them to attack the rest of the school. Regardless, it didn't matter. This would all end soon enough.

The fifteen minute walk it took to get from the school to the coastline was shorten to barely two minutes. How fast he'd ran was a trivial matter, he had to get to his destination as fast as possible. He did, and his opponent knew he was coming.

"RRAAAAAHHH!"

He was overshadowed by the cephalopod limb that shot from the water and came down on him. In the seconds that ensued Tsukune realized he had two options: dodge or counterattack.

Silvery light burst from his knife as he raised it in an overhead slash. The light cut deep into the rubber-like flesh, the blood inside evaporating as if it were being burnt away. Before the limb could crush him it was recoiling back, a scream of agony from its owner.

"KOTSUBO! GET YOUR PATHETIC ASS OUT HERE! TODAY'S THE DAY YOU PAY FOR WHAT YOU DID!" The anger had lain deep within him, a treasure chest sitting at the bottom of the sea. Like the mutated kraken, it rose from the depths, showing its true hideous form.

"SHUTUUUUUP! YOU'RE THE ONE WHO RUINED EVERYTHING! YOU! YOU FUCKING HUMAN BRAT!" He'd never seen Kotsubo's true form with his own eyes, only through Gin's pictures. From them though he was able to see that Kotsubo's true form wasn't much bigger than his human one. Still a body of roughly six feet, albeit maybe with an extra two feet or so added thanks to his bigger body mass. His current size was quadruple that, undoubtedly thanks to the Stix running through his body. It showed in the countless black veins and splotches that dotted his skin. Oh, and the absolutely deranged look on his face, it reminded Tsukune of the student who'd broken into his apartment believing he'd stolen his Stix stash.

Kotsubo wasn't in withdrawal though, he was in the heights of its effects.

A visible layer of darken energy clung to his skin, growing in magnitude as he attempted to glare Tsukune out of existence. It wasn't working, which was just making him madder.

What he did next got Tsukune mad.

Several of his tentacles were raised, and in them were people, women. Women he knew. In one of his left side tentacles was Ms. Ririko, her clothing having been torn away with several burns and bruises on her face. Tsukune seethed with rage as Kotsubo seethed at him.

"They were mine, you bastard!"

"Like hell they were! No one here was yours! No one at this school, student or teach, would want anything to do with a slimy piece of shit like you!" Any restraints on his emotions were gone. Here he was facing a figurative and literal monster; Tsukune Aono was not scared, he was angry, and he was going to make this monster feel his wrath. "What you're doing…it's sick but it's the only way a woman would ever come anywhere near you. You force them to…you force yourself on them like the sick bastard you are, then you scurry away when someone pushes back. You're a coward, Kotsubo, a sick, pathetic coward!"

Black-tinted eyes squinted, then a mouth opened in a bestial roar that probably carried across the entire academy. "I'LL KILL YOUUUUUU!"

He didn't waste time in trying to do so, one of his tentacles came down upon Tsukune. This time he dodged it, watching the ground beneath get crushed like an egg. There was little time to contemplate him suffering the same fate as more tentacles came art him.

Tsukune could see them all moving his way. They were fast, but his perception could still see them moving slow enough to dodge. His body knew what to do.

"I don't have to tell you tentacles are common amongst the supernatural. Especially if you're dealing with something aquatic. Lucky for you, I'm here to help you with that."

Tsukune wondered if Nikhil had thought of him one day fighting Kotsubo when he was training him. Given how sharp he was, he wouldn't have been surprised. Regardless, he'd have to thank him. It was because of his training he was able to avoid the numerous tentacles that came twisting and zagging toward him. Without Nikhil's training, without his knife, Tsukune knew he'd have been dead within the first ten seconds.

Instead, he was alive. Constantly on the move, slashing and stabbing where he could. His right hand was covered in black blood in no time. It stung a little, like pouring alcohol on a sunburn, but it wasn't enough to stop him. Plus, he was sure that he was hurting Kotsubo more.

And he was enjoying it.

It felt good stabbing his knife into his tentacled flesh, and even better dragging it along resulting in a bloody gash. Even as he ran, leaped, and rolled out of the way, he felt joy in injuring the kraken who'd caused Mizore and countless other women such pain.

That feeling faded as he heard the screams of some of those other women, namely Ms. Ririko. He looked up to see them still raised up, kept out of his reach and wrapped in the kraken's disgusting clutches. A scream of outrage built up in his throat; it was muted by his sudden move to activate his gauntlet shield and protect himself. The next thing Tsukune knew he was rolling across the ground, his head spinning. He could still hear though, he heard the sound of something big whizzing through the air toward. It was coming from the left, so he dodged to the right. Looking up he saw another tentacle heading straight for him.

ZLASH!

"Aaaaaahh! Shit! Shit! You little shit! That fucking hurts!" Wailed the drugged up man, his tentacle spewing black-tinted blood from its split end.

If he could have, he'd cut the whole thing off, or split it straight down the middle.

While Kotsubo wailed Tsukune took stock of the situation. Counting his math teacher there were four other teachers Kotsubo had grabbed making for a total of five. He had to cut them down and free them.

It'd take a miracle for you to just get to one of them and cut them down, let alone five. His inner voice sounded. A shame you don't have wings…or someone didn't build you a jetpack.

Maybe I can look into that over the summer, or next semester. That or see if I can cast some sort of flight spell.

Ah! Look at you, being willing to step into magic! Thinking of a class change?

While he was dodging and slashing, he considered it oddly relaxing to think of Audrey. He hoped she was alright, and he was glad she wasn't here. Tsukune didn't want to imagine her caught in Kotsubo's clutches. It'd make him madder than he already was.

A translucent blue wall appeared before him thanks to his shield. The energy barrier was tough enough to deflect Kotsubo's attacks, but Tsukune knew it wasn't going to last too much longer. Overclocking the shield would burn out the gauntlet and put him at a massive disadvantage. In those few seconds he had, the human looked at the positioning of each of the captured women. They were being kept away from him, out of reach.

I'm going to need an energy slash to free them, and another few to cut all the tentacles to keep them from capturing them again. He realized with a grimace and beads of sweat rolling down his face. His arm was beginning to hurt, but it remained up. At least until he switched out defense for offense, slashing at an oncoming tentacle with his knife. By sheer impulse he funneled more of his ki into it, causing the knife's luminous blade to extend. In the nanoseconds that ensued, Tsukune made a choice. With a roar he cut through the entire tentacle, severing it completely. He rolled away as a geyser of blackish blood spewed from the severed stump.

"Over these last couple of days, you've built up your strength considerable. I won't say you've got a load of spiritual power, but you've got a good dose; however, you still need to use it wisely. For now, let's call them 'mega slashes'. You need to be incredibly precise when using those. At best you've got about three before you're out of energy. You need to make those three shots count or use that energy in another way."

If anything, his mega slashes should be aimed at Kotsubo's head. The holy power within them might be enough to kill him or give the girls enough wiggle room to free themselves. Tsukune realized he needed a clear shot for that.

Just as an idea began to form in his head, the kraken apparently decided to change tactics.

"Grrr, you're like a little rat, you know that! I won't crush you…no, I'll drown you out!" Wide-eyed, Tsukune watched as his tentacles moved again, but not in his direction, they were aiming at the ground. Each one slammed against the cliffside with ground-shattering force, which led to the ground actually starting to give way.

"Shit!" The human cursed, turning his back and running. He knew full well as strong as he'd became, there was no way he was surviving a plunge into the ocean water, especially amongst falling debris. If the impact didn't kill him, Kotsubo would seize on the moment of weakness to crush him.

He definitely seized on him having his back turned to him.

"TSUKUNE, BEHIND YOU!" Ms. Ririko shouted.

He knew the attack was coming, and he was ready for it. In the second he split the tentacle, would another come his way? Would the ground give out completely? Tsukune honestly didn't know, but he had to take the gamble.

But in the end, it was all rendered void.

"HEY, BETTER HOLD ON! IF I DROP YOU THIS TIME IT'LL BE MY ASS!"

Looking to the side he saw black, then he was feeling the air rushing across his body. Gasping, he looked to his left, right, and then his south. He was in the air, someone carrying him. Finally looking up he peered into a set of green eyes that cackled with glee despite the situation. His eyes next moved to the black feathery wings that extended from the boy's back.

His mind jumped back almost five days earlier, the pieces immediately connected.

"You!" Tsukune shouted.

"Yeah, me! Mitsugu Hisakawa, Kinmaru's personal eyes in the sky!" Gripping him by the back of his shirt, the now identified student flew higher. Glancing down Tsukune could see why he needed to. In place of the cliffside a plethora of coral spikes had risen up. Some of them were belching more of that toxic mist. "Gah! I like a challenge, but I'm ready to beat this place for some real oceans and beaches! What about you, Tsukune!"

Despite his heart racing, he found it in him to give an honest reply. "Yes, I wanna leave too! But I can't leave without…without…"

"Without turning that overgrown squid into sushi? Don't worry, I'm here to help you with that." Mitsugu chuckled. "Besides, this is personal for me too. Bastard knocked Kaku around, and nobody messes with my friends and gets away with it.,"

From an aerial view he was able to get a better look at Kotsubo's new form. It was indeed a scaled up version of his normal form, albeit with blacken patches of coral and skin. Just looking at it made his stomach rumble in disgust. Why was that? What was Stix made of that could cause this kind of change in humans and monsters? He could have sworn he locked eyes with Kotsubo as he looked up and saw them.

"HALF-BRED BASTARD! DIE! DIE!" His mouth opened and black and red water concentrated into a sphere that was launched at the two of them.

"Hey!" The human called.

"Relax! I told you, I'm Kinmaru's eyes in the sky, so I know this shit!" Within seconds Mitsugu proved the validity of his words. He skillfully dodged the water bullets, even while carrying Tsukune. The fact that he was able to move so nimbly while carrying the teenage boy said something about his physique and his abilities.

Even if there were a dozen things Tsukune wanted to ask him, some of them angrily, he was happy for the backup.

"Alright, time for us to end this." In his right hand he pulled out something, a silt of paper that seemingly had writing on it. He muttered something, some sort of magical incantation and threw it to the side. From it a set of kanji appeared in a circle. Without a word he threw Tsukune onto it; it only took the human a second to realize he had a solid platform to stand on. Mitsugu pulled out more of the paper slips and continued chanting.

"Those are…ofuda talismans." The human whispered. "You're…you…"

"I'm not like your little witch friend, or Daiki. My magic's local." There was a hint of pride in his voice. His monstrous aura flared up, turning deep purple and funneling into his talismans. Each one began to cackle with lightning that had his hair standing up on end. "Oh, eight infernal thunder gods born from the dark mother's flesh, I beseech, heed my call! Strike down my enemy and know the taste of retribution! Welcome this twisted soul into Yomi's embrace with your almighty power! Akurai!"

He had to shield his eyes from the thunder-like burst that illuminated each talisman. Just as he recovered his vision Tsukune saw them being launched as projectiles, speeding toward Kotsubo like missiles.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

"GAAAARRRRGGGGHHHH!"

The black and purple-colored lightning did as much damage as his knife, perhaps more given their kick. Unfortunately, the supernatural lightning didn't just stop at Kotsubo.

"Aaaaaahhhh!"

"GAAAAAHHH!"

"IT HUUUURRRTS!"

"AAAAAAHHHH!"

Tsukune's fury was reignited, and directed at a new target. "Hey! Stop it! You're going to kill them too!"

Mitsugu didn't snap at him, but he did look at the suffering teachers with s bit of newfound concern. "Right, yeah, them. Kotsubo was probably feeling them up, but I don't think frying them with my lightning is a better alternative."

"Then do you have another way to free them without hurting them?" Tsukune growled. "What else can those talismans do? Can they restraint his tentacles? Can you paralyze them without hurting the captives?"

The winged boy smirked at him. "You're asking me for a plan when it seems you've already got one. Seems like the boss was right, you really are a golden egg." Tsukune didn't respond to that, not verbally. He let his knife's glow speak for him, and its shine was that of brilliant silver. "Alright, alright. I know a few paralysis spells, but they won't hold for long unless I really amp them up. The Stix running through him has given him some real superhuman strength. It'll take some time to muster enough ki to make them strong enough to hold. What'll you do then?"

"I cut the tentacles, then I want you to rescue the hostages." Tsukune declared. His voice and glare made it clear he didn't have the time or patience for arguing with this guy.

Mitsugu grinned at him. "You distracting him, that's a dangerous game. With the Stix in him, all his negative emotions are turned up a couple of notches."

"I've noticed." Tsukune said back. "And I'm hoping I can use that to my advantage. How do I steer this thing?"

"With your will. The spell will hold as long as you avoid too many hits. Same thing with your shield, oh, and hold it out." Pulling out another ofuda talisman, he whispered a quick chant, then slapped it onto the gauntlet. "There, should help keep that thing, and you, intact. Now, let's-!"

Both boys looked down just in time to see the incoming bullet, a mass of black and red coral that was speeding at them like a missile. Acting quickly, Mitsugu forced Tsukune away while he flew to the side. Mere seconds after they seemingly dodged the attack, the mass of coral exploded, sending shrapnel in all directions. For Tsukune, his shield was raised, the energy barrier active, and better than ever.

He watched in benign amazement as the shrapnel pieces bounced off the translucent-blue wall, now ringed with Japanese kanji. Tsukune looked away from it back down at Kotsubo.

"Is that the best you got? No wonder you were never able to get a date without harassing her!" The human shouted. Seriously, did he really have this much pent-up anger?

While Kotsubo's tentacles surged forward, Tsukune flew downward, straight into the heart of the attack. His shield was up and his knife was out, leaving bloody gashes as he dragged it along those that came too close. Some tentacles were outright cut off when he again flared up his power, extending the blade several feet.

"Fuuuck! Fuck! Fuck, you little fuck! You and that stupid fucking knife! Fight like a man, dammit!"

"Ah! A man? I'd love a man-to-man fight, but I don't think I'll be getting it! All I see is a drugged up coward who always had to get the drop on women to get near them!"

"SHUT UPPPP!"

"Isn't that what you did to them! Muffle them so they wouldn't scream!"

"I've got eight fucking arms! I could pleasure them way better than a human shit stain like you ever could!"

He was coated in sweat, his heart racing faster than lightning. Every one of Kotsubo's tentacles moved like lightning, yet he was dodging them all, hacking, slashing, and bashing when he got the opportunity. Tsukune knew he couldn't keep it up…but looking around he saw neither could Kotsubo. The tentacles he'd cut off weren't regrowing or healing as fast as they might have been. Was it actually possible he could cut off all the tentacles leaving only those five?

By this point, Tsukune figured he might as well try. "If that's true, how come you've never had a girlfriend! Hell, you've never even talked about one! Not one anywhere as good as a hotshot like you thinks he deserves!"

"You don't know a damn thing!"

"I know a sack of shit when I see one! I've seen plenty at this school, and you're one of the worse ones!" He didn't have time to raise his shield, he just ducked, practically flattening himself against the magic platform. In the same breath he was standing up again, his legs only slightly wobbly. "Bullies, perverts, rapists, I've seen a bunch at this school, and you're one of the worst, Kotsubo! You hide behind your authority and use it to take advantage of people!"

"That's just how it is! That's how it's always been! You didn't have any right to challenge that! You're just a human who shouldn't even be here! THIS IS MY SCHOOL!"

"LIKE HELL IT IS!"

Both men were surprised at the voice. For Kotsubo, his surprise enlarged the window Ririko squeezed through. Wrestling herself from of his tentacle, she slithered down it, her yellow-brown eyes blazing with unholy fury. They met Kotsubo's for the briefest seconds, then she launched her serpentine tail at him.

"MMMMMMMHMMM! MMMMMMM!" The kraken screamed. His screams grew louder as his mouth was stuffed with organic tendrils that reached down his throat, sapping his vile strength.

"I told you," Ririko seethed. "This school…is the Headmaster's. This school…is made by all of us, the students who learn…and the teachers who teach them. Who look after them! Not abuse them!" With all her strength, she squeezed and sucked, draining him of his life energy. It wasn't something that she did often, it was one of the darker traits of her kind. On the other hand, it allowed them to amass quite a bit of power…and it made for one hell of a way to deal some payback. "I'VE HAD IT WITH YOU, KOTSUBO! THIS ENDS TODAY! YOU WON'T HARM ANOTHER ONE OF MY STUDENTS!"

A tentacle wrapped around her lower half and managed to wretch it off of his face. He was disheveled, some of the color having drained from his face. He gasped and coughed, vomited even. When he was finished he glared at the lamia with sunken in eyes.

"I loved you, Ririko!" he shouted, spit flying from his mouth.

The mathematician sneered. "No, you just lusted after just like you have every woman you've ever met. I want more than that, I want a real man. Yōkai has a few…and I've seen it making real men I'd be able to give myself too!"

That was enough to get him to throw all caution to the wind and focus on her. Ririko saw the sharpened tentacled heading straight for her like a mass of spears. There was no avoiding it, only accepting that this was her end. Ririko whispered her last goodbyes to her parents her family, then shut her eyes to brace for the end. At least she could say she held true to her convictions as a teacher to the end.

She had one person to thank for it.

"DON'T YOU FUCKING TOUCH HER!"

Throwing her eyes open, she saw Tsukune in front of her. In his right hand was a seven-foot mass of blazing light he diagonally swung. The tentacles that had been heading for her were incinerated on contact, save for a few. Pieces of coral shrapnel were shot and cut into Tsukune's body at various angles. He clenched his teeth and kept on standing.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The multiple thunderclaps made her ears ring, and they made Kotsubo's body shack in agony. Blood gushed from his lips and even his eyes. One look at him and it was clear that he was reaching the end of his rope. But he wasn't finished yet.

As his eyes fell on Tsukune, they became filled with pure hatred. With a bloody roar he sent one last spear-tipped tentacle at him. To her amazement, the boy threw his left arm out, using his shield to deflect the massive appendage. It was strenuous work; Ririko could have sworn she heard something crack. Regardless, Tsukune was undeterred.

Her eyes flickered to her right hand, which was reeled back with his knife flipped upright. In the next second she realized what he was about to do.

"GO TO HELL, YOU BASTARD!" Roared the human who'd survived an entire term at Yōkai Academy as he threw his right arm forward. His silvery weapon flew like an arrow, starlike radiance trailing in its wake.

THUNK!

Ririko felt the world come to a standstill as she watched the life drain out of Kotsubo's eyes, hell, his whole face. No, perhaps drained wasn't quite the right word. Extinguished was a more correct description. The knife glowed bright, its light seemingly shooting through Kotsubo's insides and extinguishing the dark power within him along with his own monstrous lifeforce. And this was simultaneous to his brain no doubt shutting down thanks to knife blade lodged in the frontal lobe.

In simplest terms, Okubo Kotsubo was dead.

His colossal body got the message within seconds, the severed ends of his tentacles ceasing their flailing while also losing their coloration. Even the grip on her serpentine body went slack allowing her to move again. Of course, since she was so high up all she could do was fall downward. Panic began to seize her leading her to scream.

Just as soon as he heard her voice, Tsukune turned around, his eyes widening in alarm. "Ririko!" He shouted, urging his platform forward and throwing his arms out.

She reacted on instinct. The minute she felt his hands touching hers, she pulled herself toward him, all of her. Her snakelike lower half wrapped around the human boy who'd saved her life. Ririko felt her upper half caught in his embrace.

It didn't matter that she was practically naked, this was the second time she'd been so. When it came to Tsukune Aono…she found she didn't mind.

The magic platform he was on held up until they were on solid ground. Neither teacher nor student pulled away from each other even as they hit solid ground. It felt like it'd been hours since they felt it, but it was only a minor comfort.

Slowly, they pulled apart. Everything around them, the sinking of Kotsubo's body, the explosion of people on the scene, the uproar of the rescue, and even their own disheveled states were all minor inconveniences. Their breaths intermingled with each other and their eyes never wavered from the other's.

They weren't a human and a monster, they weren't teacher and student, they were just two people having a moment. A moment that neither of them wanted to end.

She's not just a teacher to you, not anymore.

"I want more than that, I want a real man. Yōkai has a few…and I've seen it making real men I'd be able to give myself too."

Both of them felt an impulse to act on the feelings those words invoked in them. Those impulses grew stronger with each second that passed, each one spent looking into each other's eyes.

Little by little, Ririko's hand moved up, sliding toward the back of Tsukune's head. In turn, he could feel his head deeper lower and lower, toward the brunette's. He was faintly aware of her bare breasts pressing against his chest, but it didn't send him into a nervous, lust-ridden tailspin. The teen was too focused on her face.

It just grew closer…and closer…and then Tsukune knew darkness.

---

CLIFFHANGER! Hahaha! I'm sorry, everyone, but that was the best way I could see ending this chapter. With this chapter, the "Summer School Arc" is officially wrapped up. I'll say that Yōkai Academy will still be featured next chapter, but the story will officially be moving to a new setting with a new storyline starting.

But before all that, let's talk a little bit about the ending of this one. From the contraception of this story, I envisioned Kotsubo as the "final boss" of the Summer School Arc. Between Tsukune and Ririko's growing bond and the prevalence of a dangerous drug, I decided he'd be a good sendoff for Tsukune after his growth at summer school. He's very much a dark foil to Ririko, something I wanted to bring out in the final confrontation between them. The thing is, in my original draft Ririko was going to be the one to deal the killing blow, not Tsukune. Given everything that's happened prior, I decided that Tsukune would be a better choice. This is technically his second time killing someone, but the circumstances are radically different. I can't wait to explore this in future chapters!

I'll admit that an underlying current to this chapter was foreshadowing. Tsukune's call to Mizore is probably a huge example. As those who've read the manga know, all is not right in the Land of the Snow Fairies. I decided to build the eventually showdown there a bit early. As for when he tried to call, Moka, I'm sure you can guess as to who it was that ended up picking up the phone for her. Tsukune's introduction to Moka's family is going to be rather different than how it was in canon.

The Samsung Epic 4G was officially released in September of 2010, but thanks to having a well-connected friend, Tsukune got one a few months early, and practically free of charge. It was a sudden and rather shameless addition; I am a Samsung fan.

This chapter was the last we'll be seeing of Shigeki for a while. He got his parting shot, just not quite in the way he expected. There was actually meant to be a whole section between Kinmaru's gang spying on Kotsubo and the day of the retakes, but I decided to cut that out. It'd be better saved for some more through reminiscing when the time comes.

That's Chapter 13, and with it the first arc of this story. As I said, next chapter there'll be some linger at the academy then we'll be moving onto something new. Until then, take care, readers! See you all next time!